AfterMath
by CodyMayhak
Summary: My idea on what will happen after MockingJay . I am writing as I go so it may be 5 or 50 chapters. Rated T because the Capitol Games are the basis of the story and they start around chapter seven .
1. Background

**A/N : This chapter is really short and boring but essential to understanding what is going on in Panem. It's my first story so please be nice.  
Disclaimer: This will be short and sweet-I don't own The Hunger Games or anything related to it.**

Chapter One – Background

Katniss

It's been four years since Peeta and I moved back to district twelve. When we arrived Peeta set out to rebuild the bakery while I have been volunteering almost all of my time to rebuilding the Square and the Seam. Haymitch, Prim, mother and even Madge moved back a few months after us and since then Haymitch has disappeared. It is easy to assume that he is hiding in his house in a drunken stupor. The others have been using all of their time to build a new hospital because that has been decided to be our new export. President Paylor decided that since the mines were closed we needed something to keep us profitable and she decided that since the best doctor in all of Panem, my mother, lives here, we would be responsible for medicines. Peeta and I are getting better, he still as Tracker Jacker attacks about once a month or so and I still wake up with nightmares about twice a week.

Mother adopted Madge and those two moved into Peeta's old house in Victors Village with Prim. Everyone in the district had to start from scratch because of the rebellion, which includes the 350 survivors that came back along with the 2,000 others that moved into the district. Most of the citizens that relied on the Hob either turned to the forest for food or had to find a way to buy it legitimately. The fence beyond the meadow is still up, more for protection than anything else. It is never charged and a gate was built in so people could come and go as they please. Even with this, though, very few people venture out into the beyond without someone who knows what they are doing.

District twelve is not the only one that is improving. President Paylor has made it her mission as a democratic leader to restore all of the districts to a better state than they have ever had. Except for district thirteen; it was evacuated of all of the people and is now just a secret military operations base. Most of the people either went to the Capitol or to district eight, which is where Gale and his family went. Gale has started a company called Hawthorne Industries and is providing for everyone in his family except for Rory, who came to district twelve to be with Prim. They have been together for close to 2 years and are almost inseparable.

Annie moved back to District 4 to be with her family and try to recover from loosing Finnick. Johanna Mason became the official Panem Defense Captain when Paylor was elected and Plutarch became the Mayor of District Four. Beetee is working in district two to develop a new weapon for the government to use while Effie maintains her reputation as a successful stylist in the Capitol.

**A/N : Told you it was boring. And for future reference, I will try and put an interesting fact about me in the authors not on every chapter from here on out.**


	2. Nightmares

**A/N : Now the story actually starts. [FACT-I am a twin] Disclaimer:I do not own The Hunger Games, if I did, It would be AMAZING!**

Chapter Two – Nightmares

Peeta

I wake up to the sound of my worst nightmares. Katniss is screaming her head off in bed next to me. This has happened once or twice a week since our first Hunger Games so by now I know exactly what to do. I sit up next to her and pull he into a sitting position next to me.

"Katniss. Ssh, Ssh. Its okay, everything is okay. I'm right here." I tell her as in the back of my mind I wonder if that is really the truth or if I am just saying that to comfort Katniss. When she starts to calm down I can tell that this was a bad nightmare because she has cold sweat running down her beautiful face.

"Peeta, you okay. But how? Snow just had you killed." She pants, trying to regain her breath.

"It's okay Katniss. I'm fine and Snow is dead. It was just another nightmare. Would you like to talk about this one?" I ask her. She usually talks about them unless she thinks that they are too bad for me to hear. The last time she said no I had to beg her to tell me. It was when we were in the 74th Hunger Games and the Mutts were tearing Cato limb from limb. She dreamt that I had been knocked off the cornucopia and the Mutts had done to me what they had to Cato. Except that I was in full view for her to see and she had no arrows to stop the brutality. I shudder as I return to reality.

"I don't know if I should tell you. This was a really bad one and you were killed… by Snow." She starts to cry as the memory of the nightmare returns to her.

"Everything is better when you talk about it. Come on Katniss, you know it's true." I can tell by her eyes that she can see the reasoning in my voice and is debating whether or not to tell so I try again.

"It will just hurt me more if you don't tell me." I state. She instantly decides that my pain is not worth seeing and decides to tell me about it.

"Well, it started out with Finnick, Johanna, Boggs and I on a mission for the Rebellion. You had stayed in behind to watch the bakery and Prim. The four of us were in the president's mansion to kill Snow when it went bad. As we were walking down one of the halls looking for Snow, I heard you screaming and lost control. I sprinted ahead of the group to look for you and narrowed to sound down to one small unlit room…" when she stops, I can tell that this dream was really vivid because she has tears streaming down her cheeks. I can't stand to see her like this so I say, "If you don't want to tell me you don't have to, I respect your decision either way."

"It's alright. I can tell it from here." She pauses, trying to regain her composure. "When I entered the room it was pitch dark except for the light from the dim hallway. Then, the door swung shut and I was in total darkness.

"After what seemed like an eternity of me groping around for a light switch, I found one and flipped. When the lights came on, I saw you standing in the middle of the room. I instantly knew what the screams were. They were Jabber Jays trying to get me here. Out of impulse I started towards you. But right before I got to you, Snow grabbed you and pulled you away. I tried to fight back but was frozen in place. I could only yell and scream as Snow took you from me and threw you in to glass cage with what looked like lion-mutts." As she udders those last words, I shudder but quickly come back to reality. Katniss is sitting next to me bawling her eyes out. Then, before I can consciously react, I have my arms wrapped around her and she is crying into my sleeve.

"Its okay, the nightmare is over. I'm okay and Snow is dead, there is nothing to worry about." I keep myself confident and keep telling Katniss that she will be fine and that whatever happened was just a dream.

Katniss

_Why does Peeta have to be so good with words? _I wonder to myself as I recover from my bone-shaking sobs that put me in the only place I feel safe in. Peeta's arms.

"Look, it's already 6:45. There's no sense in going back to sleep now. How about I go make you breakfast?" Peeta asks as he combs his fingers through my bedraggled hair.

"I… I'd like that." I say, barely controlling myself from having another meltdown.

Peeta stands up and heads down the stairs to make us breakfast. I stand up and move to my dresser, where I keep the pearl that Peeta gave me during the 75th Hunger Games. As I stand there, basking in the pearls beauty, I think about Peeta. He could have had any girl in Panem after the Rebellion, but he stayed with me. Without him, I would be in shambles and probably end up a drunk like Haymitch. I set the pearl back down and finish dressing and preparing for the day.

By the time I get down to the kitchen of our large house in Victors Village, Peeta has already started making Pancakes so I leave him to his cooking and head over to Haymitch's house with his daily loaf of bread. His house has been in better shape since Bonnie moved in to the cleaning. Peeta and I found Bonnie in the old Cabin in the woods one day when we were out hunting. She told us that Twill had been killed on the way to district thirteen and that she had come back here to try and move on with her life.

The door to his house is never locked anymore so I just walk right in. I can hear Bonnie clean what sounds like the second floor bathroom so I head straight to Haymitch who is, as always, asleep with his head on the dining room table. So I take the bucket of ice water from the kitchen and dump it on his head, soaking his orange tee-shirt and khaki pants. Haymitch is instantly up and swinging his imaginary knife at me before he realizes that I am the one who did it, then he calms down.

"Here wiff my bread, I see." He slurs as I set the bread on the table in front of him.

"Yup, and I wanted to talk to Bonnie about some things before I head back to breakfast." I turn on my heels and head out before Haymitch can make another sound. I start to ascend the stairs when I hear the phone ringing in Haymitch's unused office. I hesitate, wondering if I should answer the phone. When it rings again, I make a decision and head to the office.

"Hello?" I say questioningly when I pick up the phone.

"Hey beautiful, breakfast is ready and I was getting lonely here without you." Peeta says. Of course, leave it to Peeta to make me laugh even when I we aren't together. I tell him I am on my way and head home, reminding myself to talk to Bonnie next time I come.

**A/N : I couldn't come up with an idea for a cliffhanger for this chapter so I left it like this. I will try to post twice a week of so, until football season if the story is still going. Didn't I say it would be longer? Told ya so :)**


	3. Surprise!

**A/N : This chapter is kinda boring but leads into a really important part. [Fact: I have lived in three states] **

Chapter Three – Surprise!

Peeta

I was in the kitchen cooking pancakes for Katniss when I heard her coming down the stairs. Out of the corner of my eye I saw her glance into the kitchen and see me busy cooking. So she decided not to disturb me and headed out the front door, probably to go give Haymitch his daily loaf of bread and check in with her mother. When I finished making breakfast twenty minutes later and Katniss was still not home, I decided to call Haymitch and see if she was there. I walked into the office and dialed the number that I had memorized for Haymitch's house. After three rings, Katniss answers the phone.

"Hello?" She says, probably wondering who would be calling Haymitch.

"Hey beautiful, breakfast is ready and I was getting lonely here without you." I say without missing a beat from the surprise of Katniss answering.

"Oh, okay. I'm on the way. Be there soon." She says, I can't help but notice that something seems to be on her mind.

It wasn't until 10 minutes later that she walks into the house wearing her hair in the usual braid down her back with her father's hunting jacket over her shoulders. Without a word, she walks to the kitchen and sits down at the table with a huge smile on her face. I walk over and sit down across the table from her and look into those deep grey eyes.

"Katniss, what are you thinking about?" I ask

"Oh, I am just happy to be alive." She replies, as her smile grows even more.

"Wow. You are the worst liar I have ever met. But seriously, what is on your mind?" I say, starting to get frustrated.

"I know I'm a bad liar but it is a secret and if I told you it would ruin the surprise." She says. This time, I believe her and go on with my own business. For the rest of breakfast we talk about life in district 12 since we returned. After we finish and we clean up the kitchen, Katniss tells me that she has to go back out and that she would be back in a few hours.

"Fine. I guess I will have to manage without you." I sigh, acting depressed that she is leaving.

Katniss just laughs, kisses me on the cheek and head back out the front door. As she leaves, I find myself wondering why she has been acting differently latterly. I dismiss the thought and just admire the fact that a girl as great as Katniss loves me so much.

Katniss

As I walk away from our house and towards the bakery, I can't help but be amazed at myself for convincing Peeta that what I was doing was a simple surprise and I couldn't tell him what it was.

Prim and mother are already at the bakery when I arrive so I just jump into the middle of the work. I have been planning this project for over a month now. Tomorrow is the five year anniversary of when Peeta was recovered from the dreaded clutches of the Capitol and Prim and I decided that it deserved some sort of party. So we went to work. With the help of a few district twelve cooks and my mother, we have planned a great party and are working on a beautiful cake to celebrate.

Two hours later, when the cake was done and Peeta was being distracted by Haymitch, we went back to our house to set up for the surprise. When we finished setting up, as if on cue, Peeta walked through the front door.

"Surprise!" We all yell in unison.

"W-what is going on?" Peeta asks startled, obviously not knowing what the occasion is.

I walk over, kiss him and say, "It's the five year anniversary of the rebellion breaking you out of the capitol."

"Duh, I can't believe I forgot that" he says sarcastically, "Why the big party?"

"I decided that we needed something to celebrate, so I figured this would be a good thing." I tell him.

"Okay, if that's the case, then let's celebrate!" he says excitedly.

The party goes by in a blur, with everyone having a good time but it seems that it is over as soon as it starts. Then Peeta and I are sitting next to each other on the couch in the living room alone.

"Katniss," he turns me, I can tell something is on his mind because of the look on his face. "I've been thinking a lot lately and I want you to reconsider having children with me. All the time I think about how a kid could make us so much happier and bring so much joy to our lives." He really seems to have thought this out.

"I don't know Peeta, my entire life I've said I wasn't going to marry nor have kids. I've already broke one of those when I married you and it won't be easy to go back on my only remaining life vow."

"Please? Just think about it. For me?" He begs. I can see that he really wants this and I wouldn't hesitate to say yes except that I could never take the risk of someone I love so dearly having to go through the Hunger Games or witness such horror as Peeta and I have.

**A/N : This chapter's cliffhanger is okay, I guess. I warned you, it dragged on a bit. I will probably not get around to posting again until late next week bacause I am going to Florida for Spring Break. WOOT!**


	4. The Beginning of the End

**A/N : Here it is, Chapter Four! I wrote this on the flight back from Florida so I apoligize ahead of time for any errors that there might be. [Fact: I'm already bored with the fact thing and will probably only do one every once in a while :( ] Disclaimer: Hunger games ain't mine. Short and sweet.**

Chapter Four – The Beginning of The End

Peeta

The party ended and we were sitting alone when I finally gave in and asked her. She said that she would think about it. I really hope that she does decide to have kids with me. Not only would it be good for me, but it would be good for her too. Kids would give her someone to love besides Prim and I.

"Peeta?" Katniss says as she walks into the office that we had recently made into my painting room. I wheel around and look her in the eyes; it is easy to tell that she has been thinking about my question last night.

"What's wrong Katniss?" I ask questionably, knowing that it's not what's wrong now but what could go wrong in the future.

"I have been thinking about your question last night and…" she pauses, as if the gather her thoughts, "and I want to have kids with you. You're right; they would bring us so much more happiness. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you sooner." I am shocked that she came to this realization so quickly and I know that this was a big decision for Katniss.

"No, you shouldn't be the one apologizing. I should apologize for all the pain I have put you through and now I am making you question you're lifelong ideals. Are you sure?" I am having trouble concealing my happiness but I need to make sure that Katniss knows what she is getting her, no _us_, into.

"Look Peeta, this decision wasn't easy but I thought that since I love you more than anything and this is what you have wanted more than anything, so I should at least give it a chance." She says, her voice starting to quiver.

"Katniss, I love you more than anything in the world and if I ever thought that I would never do something that I thought might even have the slightest chance of hurting you. There is nothing to be afraid of. People have kids all the time." I can tell that me supporting her decision is alone making it seem like the right idea.

"I know. I'm going to bed Peeta." She says plainly, all the emotion that was in her voice is now gone.

She stands and as she starts to walk out of the living room I say, "Okay Katniss, I'm going to finish cleaning up down here then will head up."

With that, she disappears towards our bedroom and I go into the kitchen to finish cleaning and am alone with my thoughts. While putting away the dishes my mind wanders to what Katniss just said. _"I want to have kids with you." _Those seven words basically made my life perfect. Not only does the girl of my dreams like me, she wants to have _kids_ with me.

The next morning I awake at 7:00 to see Katniss asleep next to me. I quietly get out of bed, get dressed, and head down to the kitchen to start making breakfast. I decide that today is a special occasion and decide to go all out for breakfast. I make eggs and bacon, which may not seem so special but bacon has been hard to obtain since the rebellion. I was just finishing the eggs when the phone rang. As I walked into the office I wondered who could be calling us this early in the morning, especially since our phone hardly ever rang, unless it was Mrs. Everdeen checking in on 'The Love-birds.'

Usually I would let the phone ring a few times before I answer but curiosity got the best of me this time and I answer after just one ring. "Hello? This is the Mellarks. How can I help you?"

"Peeta, it's so good to hear from you again, how have you been?" asks the ghostly voice on the other end of the line.

"Fine… May I ask who this is?"

"Of course, where are my manners? It's President Paylor. I led the rebellion with Coin remember?" A shudder runs down my spine at the mention of both those names.

"Ah, yes. How have you been President? It sure has been a long time."

"I've been staying busy with this and that. Is Katniss around? I need to talk to her."

"She is sleeping. I can wake her if you would like." I say, hoping that she will let Katniss sleep.

"No, no. Let her sleep. I am heading to district twelve to check on the progress of the Hospital and would like to arrange a meeting with you, Katniss, Haymitch and anyone else who was involved in the rebellion."

"Okay. I will make sure that Haymitch is presentable. When will you be coming to twelve?" This time I am actually curious, wanting to know why she wants to have a meeting with us. I assume that it is important since she has to say it in person.

"I will be arriving by train at the end of the week. Please spread my welcome to Katniss and her family. I know it has been hard for them since the end of the rebellion." How would she know that, granted, it is true. Ever since the rebellion, Mrs. Everdeen has been getting sick a lot and Prim has seemed… different. I rebuild my composure after being caught off guard by that last comment.

"I will do that. Tell Johanna and Plutarch we all say hello. We will talk again soon. Goodbye Paylor.

"Goodbye Peeta."

With that, she hung up and I was left wondering what would be so important that she would have to come and talk to us in person. I stand there thinking until I hear Katniss calling me from the kitchen. I compose myself and go to face Katniss.

"Good morning Katniss, did you sleep well?" For once my voice betrays me and Katniss can tell that there is something on my mind.

"Yes, no nightmares. Is something wrong Peeta? You seem shaken." She questions me. I decide that it would be better to just come out and tell her straight up what just happened.

"President Paylor just called. She wanted to say hi and said that she is coming to the district at the end of the week and wants to meet with us, Haymitch, and anyone else who was involved in the rebellion. Do you have any idea what this is about?"

"I have no idea Peeta. I'm just as confused as you are." She says and I can tell that it is the truth.

"I guess we will just have to wait and see. Until then, I made us breakfast. Please, sit and let me get it for you. Besides, last night you made me the happiest man in all of Panem." I say as a grin creeps across my face.

I go into the kitchen and return with a tray of eggs and bacon for the two of us. When I sit down at the table across from Katniss I can tell by the look in her eyes that she is deep in thought.

"What is it Katniss? You look troubled." Now it's my turn to question her.

"I was just trying to think of any reason that Paylor would want to meet with us. The last time I saw her was during the rebellion almost 5 years ago."

"Once again, we will just have to wait and see. Until then, try and forget about it. Life is hard enough without things like this."

When we are done eating Katniss heads over to Haymitch's to break the news to him and I decide to go to the newly-complete bakery to try and distract myself. On my way there I pass by Mrs. Everdeen.

"Good morning Mrs. Everdeen"

"Good morning Peeta. Where are you headed on this lovely Thursday?"

"I was just headed to the bakery for a while." I decide to tell her about Paylor, even though she was not a major part in the rebellion. "President Paylor called this morning. She said that she was coming to the district at the end of the week. Paylor said that it was too 'delicate' of a matter to discuss over the phone. Katniss and I were trying to figure out why. Do you have any ideas?"

She hesitates for a second and then says, "I have about as good an idea as you. Only time will tell exactly why."

* * *

After President Paylor's call more and more capitol guards, formerly known as peacekeepers, started streaming into the district every day. Also, an announcement was made that everyone needed to be on their best behavior for the President's visit.

It seemed like every day a new rumor as to why President Paylor was coming surfaced. At first it was because she wanted to oversee the progress that the newly rebuilt district was making, and then they evolved into reasons like a family member living in the district died, or even to the extent that she was looking to build a summer house here.

Everyone is scrambling around trying to make the district look like the perfect place to be while Katniss and I wonder why she would want to meet with us. Katniss has been babysitting Haymitch more and more as the week goes on, making sure that he is at least presentable when Paylor arrives. I, on the other hand, have been trying to stay relaxed and hope that this meeting is not about what I think it is going to be about.

**A/N : What could Paylor what? I guess you will just have to wait and see ;) I already started chapter five so it should be up by this wekend. Soon the story will pick up, I promise. I have a pretty good idea for where the story will go but if anyone has any ideas please feel free to send me a message, or just put it in a review. Remeber, /R&R\\**


	5. Not Again

**A/N : This one starts out important but the end is more of a filler. The story will heat up soon, trust me :) Disclaimer: Suzanne Collins owns the Hunger Games, not me **

Chapter Five – Not Again

Katniss

The entire district is supposed to meet in the square for President Paylor's arrival. I got there early with Peeta because we are supposedly honored guests. When Paylor arrives and heads to the podium, she receives a standing ovation and has to wait a few minutes for it to die down before she can begin.

"People of District twelve and all of Panem." She starts, obviously addressing the cameras that are broadcasting her speech to the entire nation. "I am here today to announce the decision of a select few. This decision was made nearly 5 years ago but we are now ready for our last cleansing step as a country. Seven of our most important rebels were chosen to vote on whether or not we should condemn the families of ex-government employees to a fate that we as a nation had to endure for seventy-five years."

That is when it hit me; she was talking about the Capitol Games. That is why she wanted to meet with Peeta and me.

"With a vote of four to three, it was decided that the Capitol Games should take place as soon as 24 tributes of capitol decent were of 'age.' In approximately three months, these twenty four tributes will be placed in a recently built arena to fight to the death like our families have for the past 75 years."

When she finishes, there is a mass of confusion. Some people are crying because they have to watch the carnage again, but most people are cheering excitedly for the opportunity to get revenge on those form the past.

After the speech, President Paylor leads Peeta, Haymitch, and I into the conference room of City Hall. When we get there, I am surprised to see that Finnick, Johanna, Boggs, and someone else are already there. The fourth person, the one I don't recognize turns around and I am shocked.

_Gale_

What is he doing here? I haven't seen gale since I left for district twelve 5 years ago.

"Everyone, please sit down. I have some important news to tell you. The seven of you have been chosen to be either a game maker or a mentor for the upcoming Capitol Games. Gale, Johanna, Haymitch and Boggs, you four will be Game makers. Katniss, Peeta and Finnick, you will be three of the thirteen mentors. Katniss and Peeta will each have their own tribute while everyone else will have a boy and girl tribute. Plutarch will be the fifth and final Game maker. Is that all clear?" She stops, waiting for question.

"Why do Katniss and Peeta have their own tributes?" Finnick seems mad that he has to watch over two kids while we only have to watch one.

Paylor responds by saying, "There will be two tributes to a floor in the training center and Katniss and Peeta will be together on one floor. I decided this because of what happened when they were separated." I shudder when I think about the last time we were apart. It was when Peeta was being tortured by the Capitol and I had gone totally insane.

When Paylor dismisses us and Peeta goes to talk with Finnick and Johanna, I am left with Gale.

"Hey Catnip." He says, standing up and walking over to me.

"Hey Gale, long-time-no-see. How have you been?"

"Fine. Trying to adjust to life in district 8 without you." There it is; the same old' Gale.

"Please, Gale. I'm married to Peeta now; you are just going to have to move on." Right when I say that, I can tell that I shouldn't have. Gale seems crushed by that one comment so I try and right myself. "No, Gale, I did mean it that way. I'm sorry but I can't have trying that anymore."

"Trying what, Katniss?" He seems mad now.

"You can't go around just-" I start but Peeta comes to my rescue by interrupting and saying, "Gale, what's been happening in district 8 lately?"

Caught off guard, Gale hesitates. "Just the usual, Textiles and some technologies. I've started a company so that I can support my family. What have you been up to Peeta?"

"Not much, Katniss and I moved in together, but other than that I have been spending a lot of time in the bakery." Gale grimaces with the mention of us living together.

Then Paylor comes back in to finish the meeting. "You all will return to you current districts for 3 weeks and will then come to the Capitol for the reaping and to start the Games. You will remain in the Capitol for the Duration of the Games and then will be free to return to your districts or stay in the Capitol. It is your choice."

With that, everyone except Peeta, Haymitch and I headed for the train to return to their district. Instead, we walked back to Victor's Village where we encountered Mother.

"What did the President want?" She asked to no-one in particular.

After a moment of silence, Peeta told her what just happened. Starting with Paylor's speech and ending with his conversation with Gale.

"Well, there go all my plans for next month. It looks like they will be spent watching the Games again. I thought that I would never have to see them again."

This time Haymitch speaks up. "Hopefully this will be the last time any of us ever have to go to the Capitol."

"Hopefully." I reply. By now we are in front of Peeta and my house so we say goodnight and head inside.

When we get inside, I instantly head upstairs to our bedroom to go to sleep. While I am walking up the stairs, I hear Peeta mutter to himself, "Looks like the roles are flipped this time." Then he vanishes into the kitchen, most likely to get something to eat since it is 10 pm and we haven't eaten since lunch. Instead of being hungry, I just feel drained from hearing that I will have to witness the Games first hand again.

I am just lying down in bed when Peeta comes in with one of his famous, or at least delicious, cheese buns.

"I thought that you would be hungry since we didn't eat dinner." He states, giving me the bread. Without realizing how hungry I actually am, I scarf down it down and watch Peeta move gracefully around the room getting ready for bed.

"Peeta? Do you think that these Games are the right thing to do?" I already know his answer but I need to hear his voice one more time tonight.

"No, but it's too late to change that now. What about you? Do you think that we should still do this?"

"I'm not sure. I know that I voted yes, but now I don't know if it is the right thing to do." I say quietly

"Well, it's too late to change your mind now. All we can do now is focus on trying to get one or possibly two tributes out of the arena alive."

"Good point Peeta." I say. After a long silence Peeta says, "Goodnight Katniss. Sweet dreams and I'll see you in the morning"

My eyelids fall just as he finishes and within ten seconds, I am in dream land.

**A/N : In the next chapter Katniss and Peeta head to the Reapings. If anyone has any ideas for characters, please tell me. I need more. School starts back up on Monday so my posts will probably be reduced to one a week for a while, atleast until I can get my grades back under control. As always R&R**


	6. Train Ride

**A/N : In this chapter a character will be brought back. Who is it? You will just have to find out yourself :) I was looking through my notes and realized that Finnick was killed in the Capitol in **_**MockingJay**_**. For the sake of this story, Finnick was just injured in the battle and has lived happily with Annie ever since.  
Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games. Suzanne Collins does. **

Chapter Six – Train Ride

Peeta

The day has finally come, it is time for Katniss, Haymitch and I to board the train and head to the capitol for the Games. The train is set to be at the station in 15 minutes so Katniss and I head out to meet Haymitch there.

We arrive at the station 5 minutes before it arrives and, surprise surprise, Haymitch still isn't there. "Katniss, do you think that we should go get him?" I ask, worried that he might miss the train.

"No, he'll be here. And if we do go get him, then _we _might miss the train." She replies plainly.

"Good point. I hope your right about him getting here though; I don't want to get in trouble with Paylor for Haymitch missing the train." I say, still a little worried.

As the train pulls up to the station, we both look back to see a flustered Haymitch sprinting towards us. When he gets to us, he says, "Good thing Bonnie came to clean my house early because if not, I would have just kept on sleeping. Now, let's get on this train." It seemed like every day, the newly sober Haymitch grew on me more.

When we boarded the train, Katniss and I went into the dining car for lunch while Haymitch went the other way, to his room so he could go back to sleep.

As soon as Haymitch was out of earshot Katniss turned to me and said, "Haymitch seems to be sleeping a lot lately. I wonder if anything is wrong."

"Probably not, he just needs to find something to replace his liquor with. And besides, a sober Haymitch is _way_ better than a drunken Haymitch."

By now we are heading into the car of the train marked Dining. I open the door for Katniss and she yells happily as I follow her in. Sitting in the far corner of the car is Cinna.

"I thought the Capitol killed you?" Katniss whispers as she sits down across from Cinna, practically crying with joy.

"I thought they did to. But instead I was just knocked unconscious and thrown in a Capitol jail. There I stayed until the Rebels came and freed me." He says, almost as happy as Katniss.

I just sit off to the side and listen as those two fill each other in on what has happened since they last saw one another. After what seemed like hours, Cinna turned to me and said, "So, Peeta. Has your life been as interesting as Katniss'?" I don't think I have ever seen anyone happier than Cinna or Katniss at that moment.

I start by telling him about what happened to me during the Quell, then how I was captured by the capitol, and finally how I recovered and married Katniss. The whole time I am talking I can see Katniss out of the corner of my eye. She is just sitting there studying Cinna's every feature like they he was going to disappear at any second. I had never seen Katniss this happy, and was glad that she could still _feel_ happiness.

Eventually Haymitch joined us in the car. He greeted Cinna like they were old friends. As the day droned on, we stopped in district after district collecting important rebels. Johanna was the first to join us, the Finnick and Annie arrived followed by Boggs and Plutarch. The rest of the ride was spent in relative silence with the occasional conversation between old friends. Eventually people started heading off to their respective cars for the night. Around midnight, Haymitch left leaving Katniss and I alone with Johanna. As soon as the car door swung closed, Johanna started peppering us with questions. "How is the new district 12?" "Is Haymitch alright, he seems different?" but most of the questions were about the guy that was sitting next to us.

"Who was that guy?" Johanna starts.

Katniss speaks up before I get a chance. "Cinna? He was my stylist in the 74th and 75th Games. Paylor told us that the Capitol had killed him but he was really just in a secret government jail."

"Oh. So he is the one behind all of the MockingJay outfits and your flaming outfits?"

"Yep. That's the guy. Pretty incredible huh." I say, while Katniss leans up against me. She seemed extremely tired.

"Wow. I still can't believe that one person could be _that_ creative. Hey, it's late and I should probably head to bed." Johanna says, sounding more tired by the second.

"That's probably a good idea." I say, motioning to Katniss who is asleep on my lap. "Good night Johanna. We have a big, _big_ day ahead of us!" I can't help but smile when I say this last part.

"What?" Johanna says, confused.

"Nothing. It's just something our old escort used to say all the time."

Then Johanna heads out through the door in the opposite end of the car. "Katniss, Katniss wake-up. We have to go back to our car." I whisper, trying not to startle her.

"Wh-what?" she says as she wakes up. "Oh. I must have been more tired than I realized. Let's go so I can go back to sleep." Just as she finishes a train attendant enters and tells us that the dining hall is closing and we need to head to our car. He also says that we will be arriving in the Capitol at around eight tomorrow morning.

"That's fine. We were just heading out anyway. Thanks." I say to the attendant.

Then I lead me Katniss through the doors and to our car. When we get there we both change into our night clothes and lays down in bed. Katniss lays down right next to me and I rap my arms around her.

Just as she closes her eyes I whisper to her, "I love you." And surprisingly, she is still conscious enough to reply.

"I love you too. Now, let me sleep. We have a big, _big_ day ahead of us." She smiles at her reference to Effie. Then, it seems like before I can blink she is asleep in my arms. The last thing I remember before I fall asleep is seeing the bright lights of the capitol in the distance.

**A/N : Cinna's baaaaaack :) In the next chapter the train will arrive in the Capitol and the tributes will be drawn before the end of chapter eight!**


	7. The Capitol

**A/N : Here it is, the reapings! This is your last chance to submit names for a tribute. I have only recieved one and have created eight of my own. That means that I need nine more names. Male or Female will work, just comment with a name or PM me.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games, but I do own the names of the Capitol tributes :)**

Chapter Seven – The Capitol

Katniss

I must have been more tired than I thought because the next thing I knew, Peeta was standing by the edge of the bed coaxing me awake.

"Good morning sleepy-head." Peeta says playfully. "Welcome to the Capitol. WE have been here about one hour or so. Everyone else already left and went to get settled into their Capitol homes for our stay here."

Back in the capitol? Was this some kind of trick? It took me a few minutes to remember why we were here. Then it all flooded back to me. _You will be a mentor in the Capitol Games. _

By then I was wide awake and ready to take on the Capitol. I got up, took a shower, and was fully intent on heading out to see the Capitol when Peeta grabbed.

"I know it's exciting but you aren't going out there on an empty stomach."Just then my stomach grumbled and I realized he was right. So I let him lead me to back to the dining car for a breakfast of pancakes and sausage. The meal reminded me of our last day at home because Peeta had made me the same thing, although his cooking was _way_ better.

"Now can we go see the city?" I ask, starting to get antsy.

"Okay let's go." He says and we head out to see the newly redesigned Capitol.

As we step off of the train I am overwhelmed by tall buildings. As far as the eye can see, there are tall buildings. Yes, I was here during the rebellion but since the government was overthrown, Paylor has taken to completely removing any traces of the former Capitol.

As we continue towards the center of the city, I see a break in the buildings followed by a lush green meadow. In the center of the park is a large rock structure. As we approach I can start to make out gold lettering across the top.

The gold etched writing states, "In memory of those who lost their lives to end the oppressive rule of the Capitol." I can barely finish reading it because I start to cry. As I sit there, propped up against a nearby park bench with Peeta sitting next to me, all my memories of the Rebellion return to me.

Everything. Prim's death, Peeta's hijacking, me killing Coin, and everything else that I had pushed to the back of my memory. Eventually I recover enough to notice Peeta is gone. I feel it more than see it because his warm presence is gone. As I frantically look around for him, I see him standing over by the plaque with someone in a dark suit. The man turns and walks away when he sees me walking towards them.

"Who was that?" I ask Peeta when I get to his side.

"He was one of the men in charge of arranging the games. He was just telling me where we would be staying and what our schedule would be like for the next two to six months."

"Peeta, I'm really nervous. What if we get a tribute that has no desire to live? Or what if one of us is chosen to mentor Snow's daughter?" I say, trying to sound less nervous than I actually am.

"Don't worry about it Katniss. President Paylor said that we would not get anyone related to Snow because of your relationship with him. And besides, all of these kids will want to live so that they can end their family's punishment." Peeta says. He is always so confident and seems to know exactly what to say when I am worried.

"Okay, I guess you're right. So, where will we be staying?"

"The man said that we will stay in an apartment complex type building with the other mentors. We will be staying there all the time except for in-between the reaping and the beginning of the Games." Peeta said, again sounding extremely confident.

"Cool, let's go check it out." I said and we left the park headed for the mentor's apartment complex. The apartment is a large, brick front, four story building with 6 'houses' per floor. Peeta and I get the fourth room on the third floor. Johanna, Finnick, Annie, and Gale are also on our floor. Boggs is on the fourth floor with three other Game makers while the other two floors are filled with the other nine mentors.

When we arrive, everyone is in the lobby facing another man in a dark suit who is standing on a podium.

"This year's reaping will be a little different" He starts "since all of the tributes have already been chosen. Instead of the usual ritual, the mentors will draw for tributes." I try to hide my shock when he says this. I knew the tributes had already been chosen but I assumed that the reaping would be held the normal way for the audience.

That night, I have trouble falling asleep because I can't stop thinking about the Capitol Games. Then, when I finally do fall asleep, my entire night is tortured with nightmares. I awake to Peeta's relaxing words and realize that I had awoken him.

"I'm sorry for waking you Peeta. I was dreaming about the games." I say, as a cold shiver racks my body.

"It's okay. I was already awake. I can't sleep with the reapings tomorrow. Even though Paylor said that we wouldn't, I'm worried one of us might draw Snow's daughter."

"Tell me about it." I say as I glance at the clock. "It's not that early anyways. I'm going to go make some coffee."

Peeta seems surprised that I am willing to cook something. I don't usually go near the kitchen.

"Okay. I will be out there in a few minutes." Peeta says as I get up and head for the kitchen.

The rest of the morning seems to fly by until it is time to head to the reapings. Peeta goes to get ready and comes back wearing a stunning black tuxedo.

"Wow. You look amazing." I stutter, almost speechless.

"Trust me; however good I look you look ten times better." He smiles as I blush. I was wearing a strapless, glossy black, flowing gown with my hair in its usual braid down the middle of my back.

"Come on, lover boy. We don't want to be late." I say and we head out towards the park that we were in yesterday.

Every person, man and woman alike, turns and stares at us as we walk towards the city center. I don't blame them, I would turn too if I saw the ex-Mockingjay and her husband in the most expensive clothes money could buy.

When we get close the park, Plutarch approaches us and we exchange friendly greetings. Then she tells us that we will be sitting on-stage with the other mentors as honored guests.

We approach the stage and I see that Finnick and Annie are the only ones already there. Annie is wearing a dark green single strapped dress while Finnick is wearing brown dress pants and a black shirt with a silver tie.

I sit down next to Finnick and Peeta sits on the other side of me. We talk quietly until the ceremony starts, occasionally looking up to greet another mentor, or someone important enough to get on stage.

Because Gale is a game maker, not a mentor, he has to sit off to the side of the stage. He is wearing black pants and a red dress shirt. I am fine with him sitting off to the side because that means that I don't have to talk to him. When the last mentor arrives, Paylor approaches the podium and starts her speech.

"People of Panem, welcome to the reapings for the 76th annual Hunger Games and the first ever Capitol Games! Since all of the tributes have already been chosen, this ceremony will have to be a little bit different. One-by-one, this year's mentors will come forth and randomly select a tribute for this year's games…" I zone out as she continues to talk for the next twenty minutes.

I am jumped back to reality when Paylor says, "Our first mentors will be Finnick and Annie Odair. Would the two of you please come forward and draw for your two tributes."

They both stand and head to the podium. When they get there, Paylor has a large class container with twenty-four slips of paper. Finnick reaches in first and draws a name, the Annie follows suit.

Paylor then says, "Would you please read off the names of your tributes?"

**A/N : I bet you are really frustrated that I ended the chapter. Anyways, I posted an SYOT and in one day it got more reviews than this entire story has and it is six less chapters. I didn't want it to come to this but now I am begging. PLease, please, please review. They make me feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside. Oh, and if you review you get virtual cookies. YAY! Now, REVIEW.**

**It's not that hard. The magic button is glowing blue and it is right underneith(?) this**


	8. Reapings

**A/N : Now the story is speeding up and I can write chapters quicker. They wil probably come twice a week or so. So, enough chit-chat here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for! THE REAPINGS!  
Disclaimer: Hunger Games ain't mine. Tributes are tho :) **

Chapter Eight – Reapings

Katniss

"Would you please read off the names of your tributes?" Paylor says, as Finnick draws a name from the glass jar.

Finnick leans toward the mike and says, "William Parker" When he says this, a boy that looks to be about 15 or 16 steps through the crowd and heads for the stage. He shakes Finnick's hand and then Paylor tells the boy to go to the mike and tell the crowd who is father was.

"My father was Benjamin Parker; he was the Head Peacekeeper in district two." Will says, then goes and sits with Finnick off to the side of the stage. Then Annie steps forward and reads her name. "Gwen Fredricks" she says, in her usual shaky voice. A small girl, who is probably 12 stands and heads towards the stage when the name is called.

Once she has introduced herself to Annie, she turns and tells the crowd that her mother was President Snow's secretary. Then she too goes and sits off to the side with her new mentor.

This process continues with the other mentors, all drawing two cards for a male and female tribute. During this, President Snows daughter, Evelyn Snow is drawn by a mentor who I don't recognize. When Evelyn is drawn, I turn to Peeta and say, "Good, we don't have to worry about drawing her." Peeta just smiles in response and keeps his eyes focused on the crowd, to make it look like he is interested.

Finally, it is mine and Peeta's turn to draw tributes. As we approach the podium, Paylor turns to the crowd and says, "Who will the lucky tribute be that gets to trust his or her life to the Mockingjay family? Let's find out!" Then she motions for us to pick a name. First Peeta reaches in and draws a female name, so I reach into the male jar and grab card.

Following the mentor before him, Peeta leans toward the microphone and says, "Sarra Hintag." When he does so, a girl who looks to be about 17 stands and walks toward us. She shakes hands with Peeta, then turns to the crowd and says, "I am Sarra Hintag. Daughter of Mark Hintag. He was the commanding general of ex-president Snow's army during the rebellion. Then Peeta took her to where the other chosen tributes have been waiting with their mentors.

"Garet Flickermann." I say, instantly knowing exactly who the boy was. I look up from the slip of paper and see a 15 year old boy walking towards me. He arrives at the podium, shakes my hand and tells Panem who he is. He is the son of the Hunger Games announcer Caesar Flickermann.

I lead him over to the other tributes and sit next to Peeta and Sarra. Peeta looks at me and says, "Lucky, you drew the only person whose parent I liked in the entire capitol." I just sneer at him because I can't say the same. I may not have hated his Garet's father, but I defiantly didn't like him either.

When the reapings are finally over, we are escorted to the training facility where Peeta, Sarra, Garet and I will stay until they leave for the games. We are given the twelfth floor, the same one that Peeta and I stayed in for both of our games. By the time we get there, our escort is already there. She introduces herself as Dalphina and proceeds to run us through our schedule for the day. I glance over at Peeta when I notice that she has almost the exact same personality as Effie Trinket, our old district twelve escort.

Just looking at Dalphina makes my eyes hurt. She has bright red hair that goes just past her ears and matching red lipstick. Her earrings are by far the biggest and most obnoxious hoops that I have ever seen. She also has dark eye liner and a diamond nose ring. That is just her head; she is covered from head to toe with different colored tattoos and is wearing a black dress that barely reaches her knees.

The next day is the first day of training so I decide to sit down with Garet and talk strategy. I t seems that Peeta was thinking the same thing because he takes Sarra into the living room soon after we get back from the reaping.

I take Garet into the dining room and he sits down at the table across from me. "Wow. I never thought that I of all people would be chosen to be mentored by the Mockingjay." Garet says almost instantly when the door closes.

"Don't flatter yourself too much because these next 5 days are going to be all work and no play. Do you understand Garet?" I ask, trying to sound serious but not trying to scare him.

When I say that Garet instantly changes his attitude. He calms down and, by the look on his face, he becomes more focused on the task at hand. "Yes Ma'am, I understand."

"Good. First off, I need to know more about you so that we can form a strategy and get you out of the arena alive. Let's hear it. How would you describe your personality?"

"Well, dad always told me that I was really smart and could convince anyone of anything." He said, not very sure if that was the right answer.

"That's a good start." I say, encouraging him to continue. "So we should base our game strategy on your brains and character. Anything else?"

"My fitness instructor always said that I was one of the best 'dagger wielders' he had ever seen." Now Garet is getting the hang of things. We sit I in the dining room for over two hours talking about what his strategy and how to act during the interview. I also gave him a few practice questions to see how he answered and he seemed like a trained professional.

"Perfect. The interviews should be a snap. Now for tomorrow, we are going to switch things up a bit. I want you to do everything in your power to seem very smart but weak. Then hopefully we can get you some allies who will think that you are not very dangerous." I say. "do you think that you can do that?"

"It doesn't seem too complicated for someone as smart as me." I roll my eyes as he already starts creating his new persona.

"That should be all for tonight." I say as Garet yawns. "Tomorrow you go to training and meet with you prep team. Goodnight Garet." We stand and go our opposite directions. Him to his room, me to mine. When I get there, I am surprised to see Peeta already curled up in bed. I get undressed and try to climb into bed next to him without waking him.

As I start to lie down, he rolls over and looks at me with his beautiful blue eyes. "Do you think that Garet has a chance?" He asks

"Defiantly. What about Sarra? Is she as great as her dad was?" Now I am the one that is falling asleep.

"Nope. She is a royal pain in the butt. She is like a young Johanna with no athletic ability." He says, looking depressed. "I think that we should focus on Garet. We should start working together so I can help Garet to."

"Good idea. That way we can look like we are helping Sarra but really focus on Garet." I slur, already starting to get sucked into the dark land of dreams. "I have to go to sleep, if not I might pass out mid-sentence. Good night Peeta"

"Good night Katniss." He says, than kisses me on the forehead. "I love you."

I start to respond but am asleep before I can. My dreams are clotted with visions of training, the interview, and the games.

**A/N : FYI- Peeta's perspective will probably be less often once I start writing in Garets perspective (the next one will be Garet, then Katniss, then a Peeta. Hopefully) Again, I am writing as I go so I'm not sure if the stroy will continue after the games or if I will even finish the games. If anyone has any ideas for the terrain in the Arena, please say so in the review. Right now I am thinking of a dense jungle or a tropical island. R&R 'por favor' ['please' for all my non-spanish speaking readers]**

**WOOT! This chapter puts the story past the 10,000 word mark! FINALLY :D**


	9. A Late Night

**A/N : Here is chapter nine. To 'averagewriter' and ' Katniss Everdeen' I know that some of the characters are alive when they should be dead but that is just for the sake of the story. So yes, I know that in MockingJay both Prim and Finnick are killed but for the sake of this story, they are both alive. Anyways, Happy reading and I hope that you enjoy it :)**

Chapter Nine – A Long Night

Garet

That night, as I lay in bed, I think about how lucky I am to have the MockingJay as my mentor. I am so anxious for training tomorrow that I can't seem to fall asleep. Even with the reapings, meeting Peeta and Katniss, and strategizing, my mind is still running 100 miles per hour. I decide to go for a walk around the floor and explore a little to try and put my mind at ease.

I get out of bed and walk out into the hallway. I look towards Katniss' room to make sure she is sleeping, and then I turn the other way and walk down the hall. As I pass Sarra's room, I notice that the door is cracked and the lights are on. I lightly knock on the door and it opens to reveal Sarra sitting at the desk in her room with her back to me. I stand there for a second to admire her beauty.

She has long brown hair that cascades past he shoulders and a perfect combination between muscle and curves Her reflection in the mirror on the table in front of her takes my breathe away. She has deep green eyes and a beautiful light brown skin tone. It is too dark to be white but to light the be brown. The best way to describe it is beige. She is around 5' 10" tall and as I stand there, staring, I wonder if she looks anything like her father.

Just as I start to say something, I hear a small whimper coming from her direction. It takes me a minute before I realize that she is crying. "There, there. Everything will be alright. You will make it through this." I say as I approach her, trying my best to comfort her. When she hears my voice, she turns to me I can tell that she has been in this position for awhile because her usual dark hazel eyes are bloodshot and she has dark bags underneath them.

She starts to talk but the only thing that comes out is a slight whimper. I continue over to her and sit down next to her. She leans her head on my shoulder and starts to sob. Then it hits me, she probably has not had anyone to care for her since her father was killed in the rebellion like mine was.

I start to say something but stop as I think to myself that sometimes the best thing to say is to say nothing at all.

**A/N : I couldn't help myself. That is my favorite saying of all time and I had to put it in ;)**

So instead I just sit there quietly and let Sarra drain herself into my shoulder. When she seems to have cried herself out, I try again. "Look, I might not understand what you have been through, but it always feels better to talk about it. Do you want to talk to me?"

"It's just that, I miss my dad and I don't want to die." She says, on the edge of another breakdown.

"Don't give up hope. Who's to say that you are going to die. As of right now, you can control your own destiny. How about we work together and see what that gets us?"

"Really? You must think that I am crazy because I am crying."

"Nope. I think that it makes you a better ally. You crying tells me that you value your life and won't just give up like that." I say, truly meaning everything that I said. "Now that that is settled. How about I go back to my room, and we both go to sleep so that we can perform in training tomorrow."

"That is a good idea. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Good night." She says as I walk out the door and quietly close it behind me. Then I head back to my room and climb back into bed.

This time when I lay down I fall asleep almost instantly. I dream of Sarra and I working together in the games but then my dream turns into more of a nightmare when I witness Sarra being killed by another tribute.

I wake up sweating but soon calm down when I realize that it was all just a dream. I get out of bed, go through my normal morning routine, and head into the dining room for breakfast. When I get there, I see that I am the last to arrive. Even Dalphina is there, already rattling of the day's schedule. I quietly sit down in the empty chair at the far end of the table from Dalphina. When I sit down, I see Katniss smile at my tardiness from across the table.

"How was your night?" I quietly ask Sarra while still being careful not to interrupt the surrounding conversations.

"Fine, once I actually fell asleep. Thank you for comforting me last night. It is all just so overwhelming." She says

"That's okay. It helped convince me that it would be okay. So overall it was a win-win."

We both laugh at that last comment and then return to the relative peace of our own minds with the occasional short conversation with Peeta or Katniss.

I was almost jealous of Sarra because she got to be mentored by Peeta. He seemed so nice and easy going, but I got to be with the ex-MockingJay so I wasn't really concerned.

After breakfast Katniss and Peeta told us that we were going to start working together instead of with just one of the mentors. So instead of breaking off into two different groups, all four of us went into the living room for a quick review before Sarra and I left for our first day of training.

"Okay, as you can see, Peeta and I decided that it would be an advantage for both of you if we all worked together. Since we don't have long before you have to head to training, today will just be a review of what we already told you yesterday."

Then Katniss stops and Peeta takes over, "Sarra, what did I tell you to do in training yesterday?"

"You told me to stay away from my strong points until my individual session with the Gamemakers, and then do whatever it took to get a good score, and therefore, more sponsors." She states confidently.

"Exactly."

"Jak," Katniss says, shifting her gaze from Sarra to me, "Do you remember what I told you to do?"

"Yes. You told me to do things that I am okay at because the other tributes will think that those are my strengths. That will make them think that my worst is not actually that bad."

"Wow. That is a really good idea Katniss." Peeta says, awed at Katniss new strategy.

"It won't be if Jak doesn't make it convincing." She says, matter-of-factly. "That is all the time we have for you guys today. Dalphina is waiting to escort you to the training facility. She is waiting by the elevator. Good luck to both of you." Katniss finishes.

With that, we are on our way to meet up with Dalphina by the elevator. When we gat there, she seems impatient.

"Where were you? We were supposed to be in the elevator 3 minutes ago!" She says, obviously flustered by our tardiness.

"Sorry." Sarra says sarcastically. "I thought we were meeting at 9:17 not 9:14. WE won't be late again."

Dalphina sighs and ushers us into the elevator that will take us directly to the training room lobby. When we get there, only a few tributes are already there. As I scan the crowd, I notice two younger kids, a boy and a girl, sitting next to each other alone. I point them out to Sarra and she asks if we should go join them.

"Why not. Let's see, maybe we can be allies." I say hopefully.

"Whoa there, let's not get ahead of ourselves. First we need to see if they are even worthy of being allies before we decide."

"Good point. I guess I just got ahead of myself. Come on, we don't have much time before everyone else arrives and training starts."

We go over and sit on a bench adjacent to the one that the two kids are sitting on. They introduce themselves as the Drexel twins. We get to talking and learn that both their mother and father were scientists in the nut during the rebellion but were both killed. As we talk more and more tributes file into the large room.

Soon after the room seems that it will overflow with tributes, a voice comes over the loud speaker. I flinch when I recognize that it is a recording of my father's voice telling that training is now open. As we stand to walk out into the training area, my face goes hot when I feel Sarra grab onto my hand. We walk out into the facility and I am amazed at what I see.

**A/N : I am starting to get good at this cliffhanger thing. Training will be in the next chapter and the interviews will either be in chapter eleven or twelve (hopefully chapter eleven but you never know). My grades in school are starting to drop as summer aproaches (only 35 more days!) and my dad keeps threatening to take away my computer so if all of a sudden I go a week or so without posting, that is why. Consider yourself warned.**


	10. Training

**A/N : I am truely sorry for making you wait so long. I was almost done with the chapter when my compter got a virus and they had to wipe all of the memory. Anyways, here is chapter 10  
My SYOT is one tribute from being complete so I would be truly grateful if you guys would post me a tribute. Either male in D9 or in D7. I have one tribute that will fit either and am just waiting to see which spot will fill first. FIRST COME FIRST SEVRE  
Disclaimer: Not mine**

Chapter 10 – Training

Sarra

Garet stood to go into the arena to try and hide his longing for his father but it was clearly present on his face. I fast walked to catch up to him and grabbed his hand. I did this not only to comfort him but because I have been longing to feel the warmth of his hand against mine.

Without saying a word, we continue into the arena and both of us are dumbstruck by what we see. The room is by far the largest I have ever seen and the walls are pure white with the gold MockingJay seal painted on them every 30 yards or so. The only thing that betrays the purity of the room is the densely packed dirt floor. The Game makers are in a medium sized room off to our left and about 30 feet above the floor of the training room. There is a glass window to protect them from something like Katniss' now infamous private training session when she shot at them with an arrow.

All of the tributes are called into the center of the room where a woman is standing on a small podium. She tells us about the schedule for the next two days of training and then sets us loose on the stations around the room.

"Where do you want to start?" I ask Garet, still caught up in the gold mural of the MockingJay symbol painted on the floor.

"How about we start with knot-tying and work our way clock-wise around the room. That way we can do everything and not worry about weapons until tomorrow afternoon."

"That sounds good. Let's go." I say, grabbing his hand to pull him towards the knot-tying station.

We spend the next two hours or so working our way around the room until we meet up with the Drexel twins at Camouflage.

After a moment of silence, Garet says, "What have you two been doing so far?"

"Not much, just wandering around this place." Says Drexel one, the boy. "We have been thinking, do you guys have any allies yet?"

I glance at Garet before speaking. "Not yet. Why? Do you two want to ally up with us?"

"That is what we were thinking, if it is okay with you two." Drexel two says.

"I think that is a wonderful idea. The four of us working together as a team would be great." Garet says while I nod vigorously beside him.

After they leave, Garet turns to me and says, "They will make good allies. They'd do anything to protect the other."

It takes me a minute to realize that he is talking about the Drexel's still. "I agree, until the end when they have to choose between them and us."

"Hopefully we won't have to kill them or them us. Maybe the rebels will let multiple people win, or worst case scenario, they are both killed by someone else." Garet says.

"Let's ally with them but try not to get to attached, that way when they do die, we won't be crushed by our guilt." I say.

Garet says he agrees, and then we move on to our sixth station, edible plants. We stay here for a long time, knowing that this could be extremely important. By the looks of the plants, the arena will either be dense forest, or tropical.

After our sixth station, everyone was called into the middle of the room for more instruction. We were told that training was done for today and that training started bright and early the next day.

Then we were dismissed and everyone returned to their respective floors. On the elevator ride up, Garet turned to me and asked, "Have you thought about what you are going to do for your individual session tomorrow?"

"I have an idea for what I am going to do if that is what you are asking." I reply, which is the absolute truth. I know what I am doing but how I am going to do it is still a mystery.

"That is good. I still have no idea. To bad I can't just sit and talk to the Game makers." He says. "That is the only thing that I am good at."

"That's not true. You are good at way more than just that. If I were you, I know exactly what I would do." I say, mad that Garet's self-esteem is so low.

"And that would be what exactly?" He says curiously.

"If I were you, I would-" Before I can finish the elevator doors open and Katniss, Peeta and Dalphina are waiting for us.

~~Ħ~~

"How'd training go?" Katniss asks, almost instantly when the elevator doors open.

"It was good. We made some allies and tried to stay away from the weapons. Those are for tomorrow." Garet says confidently, unfazed by the sudden change in conversation.

The five of us walk towards the dining room while Peeta and Katniss take turns quizzing us on the Drexel twins and the other things that we did in training today. The conversation continues into dinner then slowly drifts to our interview strategy.

"Sarra, we established that Garet will try and charm the crowd, what is your interview strategy?" Peeta asks, turning his gaze from Katniss to me.

"I think that I am just going to be myself and answer the questions truthfully, if that is okay. Hopefully I will get some sympathy for growing up without a mother and with a father who as away more than he was home." I say fighting back tears. This was the first time that I had talked about my family since the rebellion.

Garet notices my emotional state and asks, "Sarra, are you okay?"

"Yes. It's just that I haven't talked to anyone about my family since they were killed." I say, giving up on controlling my emotions and leaning over to cry on Garets shoulder. This is also the first time that I have shown anyone but Garet my emotions.

"I think that will work for you interview. What about you Peeta?" Katniss says, trying to right the conversation.

"I will defiantly work. Especially if you get your emotions involved like you did just now." Peeta says confidently. This combined with Garet's quiet reassuring voice slowly calms my sobs.

That night I once again have trouble falling asleep but instead of waiting for Garet, I go to him. As I walk down the hall, I see that his doors in partially open and there is a dim light on inside.

"Garet? Are you awake?" I whisper as I push the door further open.

"You know it. Come sit down over here. I could use your company." He replies.

I walk over and sit next to him on his bed. "What's on your mind?" He asks when I slide up closer to him.

"Everything, that's the problem; I can't stop thinking about my family, the games and how I feel right now."

"Same, minus the family part. You are the closest person to a sister that I have ever had and no-one else in my family survived the war. I wish that we didn't have to go through all of this; for the sake of our sanity." He says, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I know. Dalphina is starting to get on my nerves." I say. I can't help but smile when I think about the obnoxious escort.

"At least we have Katniss and Peeta. On a different subject, what was your family like? I have been curious ever since you hinted to them at dinner." Garet says as he turns and looks me in the eyes. I am mesmerized for a moment by the intensity of his deep green eyes.

"Well, if you really want to know, my family was different because dad was never around. There was me, my mom and Jamie, my younger brother…" I proceed to tell Garet all about Jamie, my dad always being away, and what life was like without a mother.

After I finish telling him about my life, I say to him, "It is getting late. I should probably head back to my room."

Before I can stand to go back to my room though, he puts his hand over mine and calmly says, "You could sleep here tonight. There is plenty of room and we both could use the company."

"If you insist." I say, smiling.

We both climb into his monstrous bed and say our goodnights. I lay there listening to Garet's steady breathing for a minute before I drift off to sleep. For the first time since my mother died, I fall asleep smiling.

**A/N : The next chapter will have the private sessions and maybe the beginning of the interviews depending on the length. For those of you reading, what perspective should I do the next chapter in? Peeta? Katniss? Garet? Sarra? I am clueless. Give me your ideas in a review. R&R, they make my day.**


	11. Not an actual chapter

This isn't a chapter onto the story but it is still important. It has been over a year since originally published the story and have recently read all the books again. Now I am at a crossroads becasue I don't know if I should start a new story or continue this one. Now, I know that most of the original follwers of this story have moved on, but to those of you reading the story, what do you think? Is it worth continuing, or should I start over. Just FYI thoug, if I continue, there will probably be alot of holes in the plot and the overall quality will more that likely decrease.

So with that in mind, I ask again. Is this story worth continuing or should I start over from scratch?

Any and all feedback is very much appreciated and if you are reading this but don't feel like responding, just remember. This stories life could be completely dependent on you.


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